Dearly Beloved
by starlightened
Summary: Livia is Kairi's cousin and friends with Riku and Sora, but questions her role in their lives. Her world is torn apart and she must decide which path to choose--the path to Light, or the path to Darkness. Riku x OC
1. Destiny Island

**So, this is my new Kingdom Hearts story. Please bear with me, I've never published on this site before. Reviews would be great, I'd love to know what you think so far.**

**I don't own anything other than my OC.**

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Along the sands of Destiny Island sat a girl no older than fifteen, her streaked locks of brown and crimson swaying delicately in the cool breeze. She sat with her eyes closed, deeply inhaling the sweet, yet bitter scent of the ocean. She welcomed the warmth of the sun's rays on her glowing complexion and sat in silence as the waves crashed by her feet.

She then heard footsteps drawing nearer and her pale violet eyes opened and she craned her neck over to see her younger cousin by a year, the red-head known to all as Kairi, running towards her.

"Livia!" she called, panting slightly, one arm waving through the air.

"Hey Kairi," Livia responded with a smile, amused by her cousin's frantic yet enthusiastic behaviour. "What's going on?"

"Have you seen Sora?" she asked. "We need to get our things together if we're going to finish building the raft."

Livia's hand was brought up to her forehead. "Oh, I completely forgot about that!" She mumbled a mild profanity under her breath and said, "I think I saw him napping by the docks...where's Riku?"

Kairi shrugged. "I think he's looking for logs for the raft. He can't be too far off. Thanks, Liv!"

Livia gave a small wave as Kairi jogged off in search of their spiky-haired friend. She stood up, deciding that she had better lend a hand to her friends if they were ever to complete this huge undertaking. She dusted the sand off the back of her legs and rear before hearing someone whistle about five metres away.

She turned to see her silver-haired friend, a large log tucked under his right arm, smirking at her not too far away. "Wow, Riku," she chortled. "Take a picture, it'll last longer."

"I would," he grinned, "but..."

"...I'd kill you?" she finished for him.

He let out a laugh and replied, "Exactly. Now come on, let's go find Sora and Kairi or we're never going to get this raft done."

Moments later, they were on the other side of the island, walking up to their friends by the shoreline.

"Sora, you lazy bum," Livia heard Kairi say, "I knew I'd find you snoozing out here."

Then Sora began babbling on about some dream that he had, his eyes frantic and thoroughly confused. "This huge thing swallowed me up! I couldn't breathe, I couldn't...Ow!" His sudden exclamation came a moment after Kairi bonked him on the back of the head.

"Maybe you've been getting too much sun," Livia called as she and Riku approached.

"Have not!" Sora pouted.

"Hey," Riku interrupted. "I guess I'm the only one working on the raft." He tossed the log he was carrying at Sora, who had just managed to scramble to his feet, only to find himself on his back again with a log weighing about ten pounds lying across his chest. "And you," he said to Kairi, dramatically placing his hands on his hips, "are just as lazy as he is."

Kairi let out a giggle. Livia rolled her eyes inwardly, but smiled nonetheless. "So you've noticed," she mused. "Okay, let's all do it together! I'll race you!"

"What?" Riku plopped down next to Sora, who was still struggling to move the log. "Are you kidding?"

Livia and Kairi exchanged glances. "I don't know, Kai," Livia grinned. "I have a feeling that they'd both lose against me in a race. They're too lazy to even get up and try because they don't want to get embarrassed."

"Those are fighting words!" Sora hollered as he finally tossed the log aside.

"Bring it on, little man!" she shot back playfully.

"I'm only a year younger than you!" he wailed in his defense.

"On your mark," Kairi interceded, "get set...Go!"

Suddenly, Riku and Sora sprang to their feet and started running along the beach. Livia kept up to speed, her long legs carrying her athletic build across the sand with a practiced ease. She'd raced against--and beaten--both boys before. Soon, she was ahead of them, nearing victory, when suddenly she was tackled to the ground by a pair of strong arms around her waist.

She turned her head to see Riku smirking at her, very similar to the way he had before, saying, "I think you lost."

"You did too," she countered. "You're the one who tackled me down. Way to let Sora win."

"This is no fun!" Sora whined from a few feet away. "I demand a rematch. Riku, quit tackling Livia down all the time. Get a room already!"

At the mention of that, Riku immediately let her go and scratched the back of his head as his cheeks tinted pink. "Ahaha," he laughed, almost nervously. "Right. Sorry Livia...truce?" He held out his hand for her to shake.

She grinned slyly and rose to her feet. She took Riku's hand, and then at the very last minute, gripped his wrist with her free hand and caught him off guard, not exactly throwing him, but half-dragging him into the water.

He spat out the salt water from his mouth and glared at her playfully. "Okay, so we're even now," he conceded. "I give, I give."

Livia smiled at him and helped him up. Then as Riku and Sora walked ahead, Livia strolled casually with Kairi, who was lagging a bit behind.

"You always look so happy," Kairi said to her cousin, "...when you're with Riku."

Livia raised an eyebrow at her cautiously. "I could say the same with you and Sora."

Kairi just gave her a wink and said, "At least I've admitted it to myself. You're still living in denial."


	2. Sunset

**Part 2!**

**You get the general idea. Review please! I don't own anything except my OC.**

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Sora, Riku and Kairi were sitting along the curved trunk of the Paopu tree watching the sun set, splashing the sky with paints of crimson, orange and rose. Livia watched her three friends together, laughing, discussing their hopes, dreams and longing for adventure. She'd watched over the years as the two boys began competing for her cousin's attention. While Livia was friends with all three, she always felt as if she never truly belonged.

She walked along the curved path by the waterfall until she neared a small thicket of bushes. "The secret place..." she whispered to herself. Ducking down, she walked inside, the air becoming much cooler and the echoing sounds of the wind pummelling her ears.

She traced her fingers along the stone walls, smiling to herself at the cave drawings that she and her friends had all made together.

Just then, the air turned sour and she felt another presence in the room. She turned cautiously towards the brown wooden door that held no knob and saw a cloaked man lurking in the shadows. "The door..." he said with a deep voice that was foreign to her, "has opened."

"Who are you?" Livia demanded. "What are you doing on my island?"

The figure stood in the darkness, unmoving. From the opening of the cave, Livia heard someone calling her name. She turned to see who it was briefly, and when she turned back to where the man in the dark cloak had been, he was gone. She stood there, her mouth slightly agape, unsure of who he was or what he wanted.

"Livia?" Riku called to her from the cave tunnel. "What are you doing here?"

She spun around to face him and tried to search for the right words. "Um...I saw...well, it was..." She shook her head and then finally stated, "It's nothing. Let's go home."

The two of them walked to the docks to find Sora and Kairi's boats missing. "I guess they went ahead without us," Riku said flatly.

"Great," Livia huffed. "Kairi and I were supposed to share that boat."

"You can share my boat," Riku shrugged. "No big deal. Unless you want to sleep in the treehouse tonight."

Livia smiled as Riku climbed into the boat, holding his hand out for her to join him. She took it and for a second or two, neither of them let go. They simply stood, gazing into each other's eyes as the stars twinkled above their heads.

Once they realized what they were doing, they immediately let each other go. Livia's face flushed red, and she prayed that Riku couldn't see her rosy cheeks. Little did she realize that Riku was hiding his face for the same reason.

He picked up the oars and started to paddle. "Are you ready for tomorrow?" he asked after a short period of silence. "It's the big day. The day we set sail."

"Yeah," Livia nodded. "I can't wait."

Later that night, Livia sat in her room by her desk, doodling things in her sketchbook as she waited for dinner to be ready. There was a small rap at the door and she opened it, revealing Kairi, whose room was down the hall.

"I wanted to talk to you," Kairi said with a smile.

"Sit," Livia gestured, motioning to her bed. "What do you want to talk about?"

Kairi bit her lip and then said, "Do you think...Riku's changed?"

Livia raised an eyebrow at her cousin. "What do you mean?"

"Well," she started, "I was talking to Sora back on the island, and...I don't know, I just feel like he's different. He wants to leave so badly. I feel like he's turning his back on everything because he wants something that our home can't offer."

Livia stared at the floor momentarily. "Kairi," she said, whisper-quiet. "You and I...you know that we both came from a different world. Somewhere far off. And you know that neither of us remember where we came from or who we used to be, and while that's fine with us, maybe Riku just won't take that kind of uncertainty for an answer. He's the kind of person who needs to experience things first-hand or else he'll never be happy. Don't worry, I'm sure everything is going to be alright."

"I hope so," Kairi agreed. "But...I really would love to go back and visit our home one day..."

"Kai," Livia placed a hand over her cousin's. "This is our home. This is where we belong. No matter where that raft takes us, how far we go or how lost we become, we'll always be able to come back to our island. It's in our hearts, and that's where it will stay."

Kairi nodded with a smile, but it soon faded as soon as her eyes gazed out the window. "A storm?"

Livia's head snapped over and both of their eyes widened. She cried out, "Oh, no! The raft!"


	3. The Storm

**The fact that I even have any readers at all made me pretty happy, but reviews would make me ecstatic!**

**Please review :)**

**Insert disclaimer here.**

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Livia and Kairi rowed Kairi's boat out to Destiny Island as fast as their arms could take them. Once they got there, they realized that Riku's boat had already been docked.

"We'll split up and search for Riku," Kairi yelled over the wind as it thrashed the ocean waves against the sand.

"You're not leaving my side!" Livia cried back. "We're sticking together. Come on!"

They ran off in the direction of the sea shack when all of a sudden, black creatures emerged from the ground. "Livia!" Kairi whimpered. "Help me!" The creatures were scratching at Kairi's skin, clawing at her and pouncing on her from all directions.

Livia kicked them off of her and pulled her away. "Kairi, I want you to go hide in the Secret Place, okay? Hurry, before more of those things show up!"

"Where are you going?" Kairi demanded. "I thought we were supposed to stay together!"

"You need to find safety! I'll meet you there once I find Riku. You'll be safe, I promise!"

Tears welled up in Kairi's eyes. "Pinky swear?" Livia gave her cousin a soft smile as the two linked pinkies.

"Now go," Livia told her. Kairi ran off to the cave as Livia spotted Riku standing by the Paopu tree across the bridge. Above him was a swirling black hole, darkness emerging from it and making the winds howl between the trees. She ran up the stairs and crossed the bridge to where he was standing. "Riku!" she called to him. "What are you doing? Come on, we have to get somewhere safe!"

"The door..." he said, his back to her. "Has opened."

Livia's eyes widened. "What did you just say?"

"Don't you see?" he turned to her. "The door has opened! We can go see other worlds now! That stupid raft isn't going to get us anywhere. This might be the only way. We may never see our parents again...but there's no turning back."

"Riku..." Livia said slowly. "Get back here. Right. Now."

He held out his hand for her to take. "Come with me. I'm not afraid of the darkness."

She immediately recoiled. "Riku..."

Just then, Sora ran up to the two of them. "Where's Kairi?" he huffed. "I thought she was with you!"

Livia looked at Sora. "She's--"

Then there was a huge gust of wind that knocked Livia and Sora to their knees. She suddenly felt as if she was being dragged down into the ground. She looked all around her frantically as the darkness surrounded her, pulling her deeper into its clutches. She stared at Riku, who still had his hand outstretched.

"Sora!" Livia cried. "Go to the Secret Place. Kairi's there. Please, make sure she's safe!"

Sora nodded fiercely and fought against the shadows.

"So be it," she heard Riku say.

Her vision became cloudy and her mind started to waver. The last thing that Livia remembered before she was swallowed by the darkness was a single flash of light and the glow of a giant key.


	4. Keyblade

**Here's chapter 4! Enjoy. I haven't gotten any reviews yet...it'd be nice to know whether or not you like the story so far.**

**Disclaimer yadda yadda yadda.**

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Livia's head pulsated, a wave of pain flowing through her entire body. She forced her eyes to open, and they adjusted to the dim street lights that surrounded her. She heard someone running towards her and turned to see a girl with short black hair quickly approaching.

"Are you okay?" she asked in a loud, almost hyperactive voice.

Livia winced. "Y-Yeah...I think so..."

"Well, come on!" the girl said, tugging on her wrist for her to stand. "Get on up. I'm going to take you to someone to get you all fixed up."

"W-Where am I? Who are you? What happened to my island?" Livia was frantic. The girl embraced her in a small hug.

"You'll find everything out soon enough. Now, come on. You look like you're hurt." She put Livia's arm around her shoulder and helped her walk along the cobblestone ground to a hotel not too far away. "Name's Yuffie, by the way. The Great Ninja Yuffie."

Yuffie led Livia through the hotel doors into a room that was painted entirely green. A man leaned against the wall, his shoulder-length brown hair pushed in front of his face, hiding a long, deep scar that spanned from the top of his right eyebrow to the middle of his left cheek.

"Found another one, Squall!"

"That's Leon," he corrected. He looked into Livia's violet eyes and studied her carefully. "Who are you?"

"L-Livia," she stuttered. This man was intimidating. He frowned at her.

"You have a stutter or something?"

"No," she replied forcefully. "I'm just in a little bit of a state of shock. My home was...destroyed...I have no idea where I am, where my friends are...if they're even alive..."

Leon crossed his arms over his chest and mumbled to himself, "I wonder..."

"Wonder what?" Livia asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Hold out your hand," he commanded. She obeyed. "Imagine your world being taken away from you. Everything being destroyed...losing everything...and the determination you would feel if you had the ability to save everyone and everything, restoring it back to the way it used to be."

Livia blinked in confusion, but closed her eyes and did as Leon said. Suddenly there was a flash of light and she felt the weight of an object in her hand. When she opened her eyes, a giant key was in her palm, long and slender, shaped like a crashing wave at the very end.

"You are one of the Chosen," Leon said quietly. "But you are not the one who will save the worlds."

"What are you talking about?" Livia demanded. "What is this thing?"

"A keyblade," Leon answered. "The keyblade is a powerful weapon. It has the ability to lock and unlock hearts...a keyblade isn't chosen by the weilder. Vice versa, actually. It chooses its master. And this one chose you."

She was thoroughly confused. "How is this possible? I'm not a fighter...I could barely beat Sora or Riku in a battle, and that was for fun!"

Leon's eyes locked with hers. "Sora?"

Livia was confused. "...Yes. He's my friend."

Leon pinched the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb. "He's the one we're looking for. He's here, somewhere in this town."

"You're still not answering my questions," Livia persisted. "Why did this keyblade choose me? And why do I even have one if I can't restore my world to the way it was?"

Leon sighed. "It's very complex. There are many keyblades out there...but only the select few are chosen to be their weilders. Each keyblade serves a different purpose. I don't know what power yours has, but the one that we're looking for is the same shape as the one the King has. Yours is different."

Livia looked at her keyblade. It did look irregular...not like any sort of key she'd ever seen before, big or small. "How did you know that I'd be able to weild a keyblade in the first place?"

A smile tugged at his lips. "Your heart."

"My...heart?" she repeated, absolutely confused.

"When someone has a heart as strong as yours, it's unmistakenable. The keyblade choosing you was really only a matter of time. I just helped you trigger the process," Leon explained as he headed for the door. "Yuffie, keep an eye on her. I'm going to look around town one more time." Then he walked off, silently closing the door behind him.

"Where's he going?" Livia asked Yuffie.

She gave a big, wide smile. "Sora's here somewhere," she said excitely. "Squall's gone to fetch him."


	5. First Battle

**I'm really disappointed with the lack of reviews. If I don't get at least one, I'm nixing the story.**

**Disclaimer blah blah blah.**

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Moments later, Leon came back into the hotel room, Sora's limp figure in his arms. Livia sprang up from her seat. "What did you do to him?" she nearly screamed as Leon set Sora down on the bed.

"I found him," he said simply. "We fought. He's strong...but he passed out."

Livia frowned at Leon and turned her attention to Sora. "Sora," she shook his shoulder lightly. "Sora, wake up."

He groaned and his eyes cracked open. "K-Kairi?"

Livia giggled. At least he was awake. "No, it's Livia. Can you sit up?"

She was answered with another groan.

"I think you overdid it, Squall!" Yuffie called to Leon, who went back to skulking against the wall.

"That's Leon," he corrected for the umpteenth time.

When Sora finally came to, he had hundreds of questions. "What happened to my home? My island? Riku! ...Kairi..." He buried his head in his hands. Livia rubbed his back sympathetically. "At least you're safe, Livia. I don't know what I would have done if all of my friends were gone..."

Livia smiled weakly and looked across the room. Leaning against the wall must have been the keyblade Leon was speaking of earlier--it was simple, a golden handle and a small mouse-shaped chain attached to it, with a long, silver body.

Leon explained to Sora the same thing he had explained to herself. He was the keyblade's Chosen One...but he was the one who would be able to save the worlds. His was the keyblade that could close all the keyholes, which Leon explained existed in every world, including the town in which they resided which he called Traverse Town, and that along the way, there would be creatures who would try to stop him in his quest.

"They're called Heartless," he said. "A heartless is created when a person loses their heart. The heartless feed off these hearts, but with the help of your keyblades," he said, directing his attention not only to Sora but to Livia as well, "you can restore the hearts to their rightful owners again."

"You have a keyblade, too?" Sora asked his friend.

Livia nodded, making it appear from thin air. "It reminds me of home," she said with a small smile. "It's not as important as yours, but I'm sure I'll find out how it works eventually."

Suddenly, a dark swirl appeared in the room and the heartless began scurrying closer to Sora and Livia.

"Leon!" Yuffie yelled out. Leon grabbed his sword and eliminated it.

"Yuffie, go!" he commanded. Yuffie bolted out of the room. "Sora, Livia, let's go!"

Livia and Sora followed Leon as he ran into the middle of the Third District, their keyblades ready. All of a sudden, Livia heard loud screams, then a loud crash. She turned around and saw Sora piled underneath a giant duck and an even bigger dog.

"Ah! The Key!" they both declared.

Then there was a thunderous boom and a giant heartless appeared out of nowhere. Sora and the other two scrambled to their feet. It was huge--a suit of armor, each section hovering in mid-air, and beady, yellow eyes emerging from beneath the mask. Livia gulped. "I don't know if I can do this, Sora..."

"Come on," he tugged on her arm. "I know you can." He readied his weapon and instantly charged at the creature. Livia took in a deep breath before charging as well, swinging her keyblade with all her might against the heartless' thick armor.


	6. Promise

**Thank you so much to pottergurl16 for writing the first review for this story! This one's dedicated to you. :)**

**I don't own anything 'cept my OC. Bear with me if things seem dull now, they'll liven up soon, I promise! Also, I know that a lot of KH stories are really faithful to the storyline and the time line that they have and all of that, but I'm going to mix things up a bit while also being as accurate as I can. You'll understand in the next few chapters. It veers from the plot of the game just a tad.**

**PS. SORRY! The first time I tried to post this, I ended up posting chapter 2 again. My bad! Read on, it's fixed now!  
**

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At last, Sora gave the final blow and the suit of armor crashed to the ground. A giant heart escaped from within its chest and vanished into thin air.

"It's beautiful," Livia breathed as it twinkled into nothing. "A heart..."

"Yeah," Sora agreed. The four of them walked back to the First district and met up in front of the Accessory Shop. He turned to the dog and the duck. "Who are you guys anyway?"

"Ahem," the duck quacked, "I'm Donald Duck."

"Name's Goofy," the dog guffawed. "Nice to meet 'cha!"

"I'm Sora, and this is my friend Livia!" Sora introduced cheerfully. "We're looking for our friends, Riku and Kairi."

Leon and Yuffie walked over with another woman dressed in red and pink. Leon said, "You two should go with them. If you want to find your friends."

"Yeah!" Goofy hollered. "We can visit other worlds in our vessel!"

"Like a spaceship?" Livia asked, glee apparent on her face.

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Sora agreed. "I just hope the others are okay..." A frown graced his cherubic features and Livia frowned as well.

Donald eyed the two disheveled teenagers and said, "Hey, no moping. This ship runs on smiles. Come on, now. No sad faces. You gotta look silly, like us!" He and Goofy struck a ridiculous pose and Livia burst out laughing. "Come on, Sora! Your turn!"

Sora turned around and stared at the ground. Livia was about to touch his shoulder when he suddenly spun around with the widest smile she had ever seen on his face...ever. "HEE!" he declared. Livia bit back a laugh as Donald and Goofy rolled along the floor in hysterics. "Okay, why not? We'll go with you guys!"

"Take these," the woman in pink said. "They'll help you on your journey." Sora took the green vials labeled "Potion" and put them in his pocket.

"Thanks!"

They all said their brief and temporary goodbyes before heading out to Donald and Goofy's gummi ship. As they boarded, Livia looked back at Traverse town and sighed. Even though there was no water, no sand, no palm trees and frankly no sun, it still held a familiarity to it that was undeniable. She closed her eyes, imagining the soft breeze of Destiny Islands flowing through her multi-toned hair. When she opened her eyes again, she realized that her keyblade was in her hand. Puzzled, she took one final glance at the town and climbed aboard.

"This ship's a lot bigger on the inside," Sora said. "Look, Livia! Rooms!"

Livia wandered into one of the rooms. It was plain, with white walls, a bed and a desk. There was a window where she could see the stars floating before her eyes. "It's nothing spectacular," she mused. "But at least the view is nice."

She was physically exhausted. She flopped down onto the bed, burying her face in the soft, white pillow. In the silence that surrounded her, she was reminded of how she didn't keep her promise to Kairi and how she would probably never see Riku again. A tear slid down her cheek and hit the pillow with a soft pitter patter that seemed to echo throughout her mind.

There was a knock at the door. "Come in," she sniffled, hastily wiping her eyes and sitting up.

"Liv?" Sora poked his head inside. "Are you okay?"

She sat up and nodded. "Yeah...just...overwhelmed."

"We'll find them," Sora said reassuringly, sitting next to her and rubbing her back. "I promise."

"Promise..." she mumbled to herself. "Sora, I promised Kairi that I would keep her safe. When you went to the Secret Place, was Kairi there?"

"Well..." Sora hesitated. "She was there, sort of, and then I tried to hold onto her, but she disappeared into thin air."

She burst into tears. "I'm supposed to take care of her. I'm supposed to keep her safe, and now I don't even know where she is. What kind of a person am I, Sora? I can't keep my promises to anyone...what if we never find them?"

"We'll find them," he said sternly. "That's a promise that I will never break."

Wiping her eyes again, she took in a shaky breath. "And what happened to Riku?"

Sora looked away. "Swallowed by the darkness. I don't know what happened to him...but before he disappeared, he had this look in his eyes...it was like nothing I'd ever seen in him before."

Livia bit her lip. "I'm worried, Sora," she said quietly. "What if the darkness swallows his heart?"

"His heart's too strong," Sora reasoned. "I'm sure he'll be okay. We'll find him and Kairi soon."

"I hope you're right," she said sadly. "I just wish I knew where they were."

"We're landing!" Donald called from the front of the ship. "Get ready. It's some place called Wonderland."

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**Review please!**


	7. Wonderland

**Here's chapter 7. If you're confused about this part, it might be because I messed up posting part 6...however, I fixed it, so in case you haven't gone to read it yet, I suggest you do so. And if you have, ignore that whole deal and read on.**

**Thank you to Amadeus Inkblood for the review! Keep them coming everyone, I love to hear from you :)**

**I don't own anything 'cept my OC.**

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"What is this place?" Livia breathed as they entered a narrow hall with checkered floors. Strange things littered the place--everything was topsy-turvy and nothing was where it should have been. They suddenly heart the tick-tocking of a pocket watch and looked over to see a small, white rabbit wearing glasses and a red suit jacket.

"I'm late! I'm late!" he bawled. "The Queen--she'll have my head for sure!"

He dove past the group and into a room that was opened by about five or six different doors that got smaller and smaller. Sora shrugged and headed inside, followed by Donald, Goofy and finally Livia. When she entered the room, she saw that the little white rabbit had truly lived up to its name--it was miniscule.

"How'd he get so small?" she pondered aloud.

The four of them crowded around the tiny door the rabbit had gone through when suddenly, it spoke. "You're just too big," it replied cheekily.

"Woah!" Sora gasped. "You...can talk?"

"Yes, and you're disturbing my nap," the knob yawned.

"Wait!" Sora said. "What do we have to do to be small?"

"Why don't you try the bottle?" the knob mused, glancing over at the table behind them. "Over there."

Livia looked over. There were two bottles, one red and one blue. The red one read: "Drink me and I'll make you big." The blue one read, "Drink me and I'll make you small."

The four all drank from the blue bottle and immediately began to shrink. Livia squeezed her eyes shut as the world grew around her, and eventually towered over her tiny frame. "Come on," she heard Sora say. "Let's go follow that rabbit!"

Since the knob had fallen asleep, they discovered an alternate door and scurried through. Once inside, they found themselves in a lush garden littered with roses and men shaped like different kinds of playing cards. There was a stand where a frail looking blond girl in a blue dress and white apron stood, and before her was a rather large, surly looking woman holding a cepter with a heart adorning the top. Livia assumed she was the Queen, for she could see the tiniest crown behind her massive head.

The white rabbit ran up to a podium and blared a horn declaring, "Court is now in session!"

The blond girl looked shocked. "I'm on trial? But why?"

The Queen boomed, "This girl is the culprit, there's no doubt about it! And why? Because I say so, that's why!"

"She's psychotic!" Livia hissed.

"You are found guilty on the count of the attempted theft of my heart," the Queen continued. "Off with her head!"

"Please!" the blond girl pleaded. "This is totally unfair!"

Sora ran forward. "Hey! Um, your Majesty, we know who the real culprit is!"

"Yeah," Goofy chimed in. "It was the Heartle--" He quickly covered his mouth, remembering that on the ship, Donald had warned him about meddling in the affairs of other worlds.

Sora looked at Goofy crossly. "Yeah, well...anyway, she's not the one you're looking for."

"And do you have proof?" the Queen huffed. Sora scratched at the back of his head. "Hmph," she tutted. "Go and find me proof of Alice's innocence, or it'll be off with all of your heads!"

Livia stared at Sora. "Way to go! What happened to not getting involved, Sora?"

"This is different!" he exclaimed. "We have to help her! Come on!" He ran into the Lotus Forest as Donald and Goofy trailed behind him. Livia paused for a minute, staring back at where Alice had been standing. She was now trapped in a cage behind bars, looking beyond mortified at what would happen if Sora were to fail in his quest to find proof for the Queen.

She turned back and headed into the forest. It was a dark place...shadows loomed everywhere and seemed to be even more ominous now that she had shrunken in size. She was already feeling uneasy when she heard a small laugh.

Turning on her heel, her keyblade in her hands, she yelled out, "Sora? Goofy? Donald? Is that you?"

Before her eyes, a cat appeared from seemingly nowhere, pink with purple stripes and a smile that both frightened and hypnotized her at the same time. "Well hello there," the cat said. "Your friends have been chasing shadows without you. Shadows are all over this forest...better be careful or else they'll swallow you whole."

"Shadows?" she mumbled to herself.

"Oh, yes," the cat continued. "Here, there, everywhere...one can hardly take a step without stepping on one."

"Where are my friends?" she asked nervously. "Which way did they go?"

The cat slowly started to disappear, his smile fading the slowest. "They go wherever shadows go. That's the best place to start."

And he was gone.

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**Review? :)**

Suddenly, Livia felt a gust of wind and she turned to find dozens of Heartless surrounding her. She had never had to fight the Heartless alone before, and she was petrified. She stumbled back, falling down onto the ground. They started clambering towards her, and she covered her face with her arms, squeezing her eyes shut as they lunged.

She waited for the pain of the attack, but it never came. "H-huh?" she stuttered, opening her eyes. She lowered her arms and stared, completely dazed, at who stood before her. "...Riku?"


	8. Reunited

**Sorry that this one's so short! Thank you to pottergurl16 and Amadeus Inkblood for reviewing.**

**Keep reviewing though, feedback is always a good thing. Enjoy! Expect part 9 by tomorrow.**

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Riku smiled at her and helped her to her feet. A huge grin spread on her face and she caught him in a tight hug, her arms wrapping around his shoulders and his around her waist. "I'm so glad you're safe," she mumbled into the crook of his neck. "I was so worried..."

"I missed you," he simply said.

They pulled apart and Livia asked, "Is Kairi with you?"

Riku frowned. "I haven't found her yet, but I know someone very powerful who can help me find her."

Livia cocked her head to the side. "Who?"

"Come with me," he said, holding both her hands in his, "and you can meet her yourself."

She bit her lip and looked back into the thickets of the forest instinctively. "But Sora and the others...I can't just leave them, Riku. Why don't you come with us? Then we won't have to be apart anymore."

Riku wouldn't look her in the eye. "Livia..." he said quietly. "I can't go with Sora. It'd be impossible."

She stared at her friend, confused beyond belief. "It's impossible to travel to other worlds with your friends? Wasn't that the initial plan back on the islands when we were building that raft?"

He tightened his grip on her hands, giving them a light squeeze. "This is different," he reasoned. "I can't go with Sora. Not now. There's too much at stake here. I have to find Kairi and I have to do it on my own."

She tore her hands away from his. "Stop that, Riku!" she exclaimed. "Stop trying to be a one-man team. Why can't you accept that you can't make it through everything alone? Why are you so stubborn? Sora and I want to find Kairi as much as you do, if not more. She _is _my family, after all!"

"Don't make this about you," he hissed.

Livia's jaw went slightly agape. "Are you kidding me? When was I making this about me? You're the one who wants to run off on your own and leave Sora and I behind!" She sighed, softening her tone. "What did we do, Riku? Why won't you stay?"

He hesitated. "I just...I don't want you to get hurt."

She could sense his lie, but didn't want to press any further.

"I still want you to come with me," he said quietly. "Please...the only way I know you'll be safe is if you stay with me. I can protect you, Livia. I know that I can."

Livia bit her lip again, staring at the cold, hard ground. "But if I leave Sora..."

"He has his other friends, the duck and that dog," Riku insisted. "Please...I don't want to have to leave here without you."

"Is that why you came to this world?" Livia asked softly. "To come and get me?"

Riku nodded. "I missed you, remember?"

She gave a small nod. Livia didn't know what to do. Her heart was tugging her in two different directions. Part of her desperately wanted to go with Riku and the other part of her knew that she had to stay with Sora. It was almost as if her heart and mind were playing tug-of-war, and her heart was winning.

She looked deep into Riku's aqua eyes and finally said, "Alright."

A wave of relief swept over the silver-haired boy's face and he placed a small kiss on her forehead. "Thank you," he whispered into her ear.

Taking her hand in his, he opened a dark, swirling portal and led her through. Remembering the feeling she had last time of being swallowed by a looming dark hole, her eyes frantically shot around the Lotus Forest for any signs of Sora, hoping that maybe seeing her friend would change her mind.

"Don't be afraid of the darkness," Riku said, tugging on her hand. "It's alright. You'll be safer this way."

Livia took in a deep breath and followed Riku through the portal, her eyes squeezed shut as she felt the darkness eclipse her entire body.

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**Once again, sorry about how short it is! Review? :)**


	9. Maleficent

**Thank you to everyone who has added this story to their favourites list or alerts list :) Makes me smile.**

**Keep reviewing! I'd love to hear from more of you.**

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"Open your eyes," Riku's voice seemed to echo. Livia opened them tentatively, as if she was seeing the world for the first time. She looked around and realized that Riku had brought her to what seemed like a giant castle.

"W-where are we?" she asked, trying to see where exactly they were. They were in a large room with one bed, a dresser and a desk, a large picture window with drawn curtains with a view overlooking what seemed like a river that flowed all around the building.

"A place called Hollow Bastion," he replied, seeming almost...cold. "Stay here. I'll be back soon."

Before he could walk out the door, Livia grabbed onto his wrist. "I thought you said that you didn't want to leave me," she mumbled. "Where are you going now?"

"I'll be back," he replied. "I just have some things to finish first."

Livia sighed sadly. "Who was it you wanted me to meet, again?"

Riku stiffened. "Maleficent," he answered. "She knows you're here. She wants to meet you too. Go downstairs to the main foyer and head into the library. It's the one with the grand oak doors, you can't miss it."

And with that, he materialized a portal out of nowhere and stepped through, disappearing.

Livia took in a deep breath and made the journey downstairs. The staircase wound in a coiled fashion around every floor and when she finally made it down to the foyer, she was actually dizzy. She saw the large oak doors with the word "LIBRARY" inscribed above them and pushed them open.

The library itself was immense. Shelves upon shelves of books on both the first and second floors. She passed a shelf, skimming her fingers along their spines and covers. Livia had always loved literature, and this library looked like it could have been her sanctuary.

_Maybe this place isn't so bad_, she mused. _After all, it's got quite an extensive library..._

"Child," she heard a stern, yet musical voice call out from deeper into the heart of the room. "Come closer."

Cautiously, Livia stepped forward, an uneasy feeling suddenly overwhelming her entire being. She neared where the voice came from to a small clearing with two grand looking chairs coated in red velvet with gold trimmings. The woman who towered over her both frightened at intruiged the girl--she had never seen anyone like her before.

She was a tall, thin woman wearing a black and purple cloak that hung over her entire body and draped loosely onto the floor. A second layer of fabric from underneath the cloak crept up the woman's neck, covering both sides and the back of her head, coming at the top into two curved horns. Her face was a sickly green and her eerie yellow eyes made a shiver run up and down Livia's spine.

"Are you..." Livia paused, trying to recall the name Riku had told her, "...Maleficent?"

"Yes," she purred, gripping a cepter in her hand with a glowing green orb balanced on the head. "You must be Livia, that friend of Riku's."

"Yes ma'am."

Her sharp yellow eyes looked her over intensely. "You heart is strong," she grinned, leaning towards her, placing a hand on Livia's shoulder. "Would you like to be even more powerful?"

Livia stood there in shock for a moment before finally recapturing her voice. "More...powerful? I don't understand. I thought that I was--"

"Powerful enough?" Maleficent cackled. "You do hold some power, dear girl, but there is something crucial missing that you need in order to gain true power." She leaned closer and whispered into Livia's ear, "The power of darkness."

"Darkness?" Livia repeated, more to herself than the witch before her. "But won't the darkness just cause more chaos and destruction? How can destruction bring about good?"

Maleficent straightened her back and tapped her fingers along her cepter. "You want to find your cousin, don't you?"

Livia's eyes snapped up to meet hers. "How did you know about Kairi?"

"Riku," she said simply. "She's all he ever talks about."

A small pang hit Livia's heart at those words. Her eyes trailed to the floor and she sighed, shaking her head slightly. "You know how to find her?"

A smirk appeared on Maleficent's face. "It must be hard for you," she cooed, "being so deeply in love with that boy and realizing that he will never reciprocate those feelings."

Livia glared at the witch. "Stop talking to me as if you know me. I don't need your help and I don't want to use the power of darkness."

"Oh, really?" Maleficent mused, resting her cepter on the ground. "Then why are you here?" Livia broke eye contact and went back to examining the floor. "Think about my offer," she said, almost gently. "It's really what's best. For yourself, Riku and Kairi."

Livia nodded blankly and hurried out of the library. She ran back up the spiral stairs to her room, slamming the door behind her. Her breath was ragged and she collapsed on the floor hugging her knees to her chest. She didn't realize that she had been crying until a tear fell off her cheek and hit her knee. She hastily wiped it away and inhaled shakily.

What was she going to do?

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	10. Replaced

**Sorry that this one's so short! Things start to get interesting after this chapter. Promise.**

**Keep reviewing! I love you all.**

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The sky darkened outside Livia's picture window as she remained in her position, leaning against the door, a dejected look gracing her features. She hadn't budged for what felt like hours. She hadn't bothered to look at the clock that stared at her from the wall, and she hadn't bothered to wipe away the stray tears that rolled occasionally down her face.

"I just..." she mumbled to herself, her breathing uneven and her voice hoarse, "I just want to go home..."

There was a gentle rap on her door. The vibration shocked Livia's body back into movement. She stood up and opened the door slowly, revealing Riku with a concerned look in his eyes. "Are you alright?" he immediately asked, reaching out to touch her arm. She recoiled. He frowned slightly, but continued. "Have you been crying?"

Livia wiped her eyes and sniffled slightly. "Maybe."

"Why?" he asked forcefully. "You don't have anywhere else you can go or anyone else you can talk to. Why won't you tell me what's wrong?"

"I have Sora," she seethed. "I have Sora and Kairi and my life back in the islands. I had a life, a family, best friends...and now they're all gone." Suddenly, Livia's keyblade appeared in her hands and Riku backed away.

"What?" he shot arrogantly. "You want to fight me?"

She raised an eyebrow, not realizing that her keyblade was in her hands. When she noticed that her weapon was drawn, she made it disappear. "N-no, Riku, that's not what I wanted...I'm just...confused. By everything. I want to go back home. I don't think I should have left Sora behind. What if he's worried?"

Riku's face went grim. "You want to know if he's worried about you?" he repeated. Sighing, he opened a portal and said, "Come with me. I'll bring you to Sora."

He took her hand in his and pulled her through the portal. When they emerged, Livia recognized her surroundings as the Third District in Traverse Town. They were standing on the roof of one of the buildings, looking into the window of someone's home. The golden glow of the lights inside pierced through the darkness of the night and Livia could see the figures of Sora, Donald and Goofy through the glass.

"Look at them," Riku said quietly. "Look how carefree they are. They don't care about you. They don't even miss you. If they did, they'd be out there searching for you right now, not goofing off."

Livia was in shock. "They...they don't care?"

She felt Riku's body move closer to her's, his hands placed gently on her shoulders. Into her ear, he said softly, "They don't care about you the way I do. Sora's replaced you. He's replaced _us_. Come back to Hollow Bastion with me. There's nothing wrong with wanting to help Kairi using the power of darkness."

Livia turned to him, their faces just millimetres apart. She looked deep into Riku's aquamarine eyes and questioned, "Are you just using me to get to Kairi?"

He let out a laugh. "Livia...you have to understand...I'm worried about Kairi because she's the only one out of our group that we can't find. I just want to make sure that she's safe. She and I are just friends. I promise."

"Promise..." she repeated to herself.

"Will you come back with me to the castle?" Riku asked once again. "Maleficent can help you. She has great powers. It's what's best for everyone." He rested his forehead against hers and slid his hands around her waist. "I'll be there with you. You won't be alone."

Livia brought a hand up to Riku's chest, feeling the slightly rapid beat of his heart against her palm. Closing her eyes with a small smile, she pulled him in and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. After a few seconds, she pulled away and said, "As long as you're with me, I'll welcome the darkness with open arms."

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**Review please! It takes just five seconds. Like or dislike?**


	11. Monstro

**So, this one's kind of short. My apologies, I'm working on the next one and it's a bit longer. Sorry if things seem kind of slow...I promise, things get a lot more interesting soon! Stick around, I'll do my best to entertain you.**

**Thank you to pottergurl16 for always reviewing, and for Zamaya for doing so as well! Chapter 1 got over a hundred reads. I never thought I'd get that far so soon! Keep the reviews coming. Thank you to Kanika Meskhenet, xCorruptedAngelx, Bitja and DarkFlame Alchemist for adding this story to their favourites! It really means a lot. Anyway, I've blabbed on long enough. Read on!**

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Livia held onto Riku's hand as he led her down the marble corridor to Maleficent's study. Their footsteps echoed through the halls, the dim lights that dangled haphazardly from the ceiling causing their shadows to sway back and forth as they walked. They made it to her study and Riku knocked on the door.

"Come in," the witch's voice mused from inside.

Riku pushed the door open and led Livia inside. Maleficent stood in front of what looked like a cylindrical pedestal or altar of some sort, standing in a circle with several other people that Livia had never seen before.

"Riku, who are these people?" she whispered.

"Don't worry," he replied. "They're here to help."

Maleficent turned to face the two teens and grinned. "My dear...have you made your decision?"

Livia gulped and answered, "Yes...I have."

The people in the shadows of the circle mumbled amongst themselves as Maleficent let out a low laugh. "Excellent," she said, raising her cepter in the air. "I instill upon you...the power of darkness!"

Riku let go of Livia's hand as she felt a surge of power rush through her veins. Her body was surrounded by a flickering green glow that pulsated against her skin. Her crimson hair floated around her face and she closed her eyes, welcoming the darkness into her heart.

Soon, the green glow faded and her hair fell onto her shoulders again, but the feeling of intense power remained. She opened her eyes and gave a half smile, her breathing a bit shaky. "So this...is the power of darkness..."

"Yes," Maleficent replied. "Now, I have something to show the two of you."

She moved aside so that Livia and Riku could see the altar and they gasped at the hologram that appeared before them. "Kairi!" Riku exclaimed.

"I've kept my part of the bargain," she said airily. "I trust you'll do the same. There's a puppet who appears to have acquired a heart. Find him and bring him to me...or else Kairi will remain a lifeless shell."

"Wait," Livia interrupted. "Kairi...doesn't have a heart? What happened to it?"

"Taken by the Heartless, no doubt," Maleficent huffed. "Now, go," she ordered, opening a dark portal with the wave of her cepter. "Don't disappoint me."

The two of them walked through the portal and Livia felt the floor give slightly under her feet. The air smelled damp and thick...looking around, she saw the remains of a shipwreck piled in high mountains, puddles of water, and walls of flesh surrounded her from all sides.

"Where are we?" Livia finally asked once she'd thoroughly taken in her surroundings.

"The inside of a whale," Riku responded casually. "Monstro."

"A whale?" she exclaimed. "Seriously?"

"Look," Riku pointed down at the deep pond below. Something twitched beneath the surface. "That's its tongue."

Livia swallowed hard. "So...we're actually inside a whale?"

Riku laughed. "What? Don't sound so stressed out. Are you afraid or something?"

"N-no," she defended. "Just don't want to be...consumed."

He let out a small chuckle. "Okay. Let's go look for this puppet, okay?"

Livia nodded and they walked deeper into the different inner chambers of Monstro's body. "Where are we supposed to find a puppet in this whale?" she finally asked.

Riku shrugged. "He can't be far. Come on, let's keep looking."

Then, Livia sensed a disturbance in the area. She turned on her heel to see Heartless appearing out of thin air, their eyes rotating in their heads, emitting lights that shone through the mist. She ran up to Riku and tugged on his hand. "Riku, the Heartless are here!"

"It's alright," he said dismissively. "We control the darkness, remember? They listen to us now. Watch." He waved his hand at the Heartless and they instantly disappeared.

Livia blinked a few times in disbelief. "Where'd they go?"

"To find that puppet," Riku answered. "Pinocchio."

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	12. The Puppet

**Alright, so before anyone says anything, I know that I'm not going in perfect chronological order with the actual game, but it works better with the story if I don't...does that make sense? Anyway, here's the next installment. I've got almost 130 hits on this story so far! Pretty sweet, since it's only been up for maybe a week and a half. If any of you would like to spread the word about this story if you like it, I think that'd be awesome.**

**Thank you to pottergurl16, teeheexoxo and xxKHxxFan14 for reviewing the last chapter :) Keep them coming! Anyway, enjoy :)**

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After about twenty minutes of searching, Livia heard a noise that sounded like wooden blocks clacking together. She turned to the glowing opening of one of the chambers and saw a puppet that looked just like a real boy running towards her and Riku, his strings attached to wooden bars following close behind. He had a smile across his face, as if he was playing some sort of game.

He ran without looking directly into Livia, knocking her over. "Oh, I'm sorry!" the puppet blushed. "Are you alright?"

Livia just stared at...it. "Are you...Pinocchio?"

"Yup!" he grinned happily. "I'm playing Hide and Seek."

"Hide and seek?" she repeated. "With who?"

Pinocchio stood up and Livia rose as well. "My new friends," he said simply.

From over the puppet's shoulder came a voice. "Pinocchio? Come on, stop playing games!"

Livia's eyes widened. "Sora?"

"But Sora," Riku interrupted. "I thought you liked playing games."

Sora whipped around and his clear, blue eyes bugged out of his head. "Wha--? Riku! Livia? What are you two doing here?"

Livia bit her lip. She wanted to run to Sora and squeeze him in a rib-breaking hug until all the air had excaped from his lungs, but judging by the stern look on Riku's face, that wouldn't have been such a good idea. She opened her mouth to speak, but Riku beat her to it. "We're taking this puppet. His heart may be the key to saving Kairi."

"What are you talking about?" Sora demanded, clenching his fist. "You know where she is?"

Riku grabbed onto Pinocchio's wrist and said, "Maybe. Catch us, and maybe I'll tell you what I know." And with that, he tugged him further into the bowels of Monstro's stomach. Livia stood there, frozen in place. Sora stared at her sadly.

"Livia, do you know where Kairi is?" he asked her softly.

"I--" she breathed shakily. "I'm sorry, Sora." She whipped around and ran after Riku, her hair flying behind her.

She could hear Sora's footsteps echoing hers, but managed to lose him through one of the pulsating chambers. Livia saw Riku a few feet ahead, but he was standing alone. Pinocchio was gone. Livia was about to ask what had happened to the puppet when she heard a scream.

"Help! Somebody, help me!"

Before her was a giant purple heartless with long, heavy arms that dragged along the porous ground and flailed wildly int he air and a cage-like middle that held a frightened looking Pinocchio crying for help behind its bar-like teeth.

"Riku, we have to help him!" Livia cried over the sounds of Pinocchio screaming and the Heartless snarling. "Do something!"

"It won't listen to me!" Riku growled. "We have to fight it!"

"Riku! Livia!" Sora's voice yelled from the chamber's entrace. "What did you do with Pinocchio?"

"Sora," Livia called back, "He's--"

She never got to finish her sentence. One of the Heartless' arms came crashing down onto her, knocking her to the ground. She gasped for air, trying in vain to rise to her feet. She felt herself being picked up by her shirt and thrown against something stiff, yet pulpous. Forcing her eyes to open, she saw the frightened puppet clinging to the Heartless' teeth for dear life.

"Please help us!" he cried frantically. "Help!"

Livia sat up as best she could to see both Sora and Riku swinging with all their might at the giant Heartless, trying to defeat the creature in order to save herself and Pinocchio. Livia summoned her own keyblade in her hands and stabbed down on the inside of the Heartless' mouth, causing it to cry out in agony, spitting out its two victims.

Livia sprawled out on the ground, gasping for air. Sora ran up to her and helped her sit up. "Wha...S-Sora?" she mumbled, her head pounding. "Where's Riku?"

"This way," he said, helping her up. There was a giant hole in the ground where the Heartless had fallen through, and holding onto Sora's hand, Livia made the jump down to the inside of the throat.

Riku stood next to Pinocchio, who was slumped over with his eyes lightly closed.

"Riku!" Sora shouted, "Let Pinocchio go!"

"A puppet who's lost his heart to the Heartless," Riku muttered, staring at the puppet. "Maybe he holds the key to saving Kairi." He looked up at Sora expectantly. "How about it, Sora? Let's join forces and save her."

Sora clenched his teeth and gripped his keyblade tightly, preparing for battle.

"What?" Riku smirked. "You'd rather fight me?"

"What are you talking about?" Sora countered. "Riku--"

Before Sora could finish his sentence, the Heartless from before leapt down from the gaping hole in the ceiling and flung its arms in Sora's direction. Livia stared helplessly as her eyes started to droop. She felt a strong tug on her arm and the sound of a portal being opened. The last thing she saw was Riku's piercing aquamarine eyes upon her, harsh and cold, as she slipped into the darkness of her own mind.

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	13. Questions

**Thanks to SoulNinjas for reviewing the last chapter and adding this story to their favourites. I really means a lot to me :)**

**I have up to chapter 20 written so far, so that means the updates will keep on coming--as long as the reviews follow suit.**

**This one's filler-ish, but at the same time, it's sort of the turning point for the story. So it's filler-ish with a hint of importance in it. Please review, it'd make my evening!**

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Livia's eyes fluttered open slowly. She found herself back in the castle, lying in her bed as the faint light from the moon cascaded down from the sky and washed over her sheets. She sat up a little too quickly and gripped her head in pain as the room spun momentarily. She shook the dizziness away and looked around to find Riku leaning against the wall by the door.

"Riku?" she called out. "How long was I out for?"

He sighed. "About four or five hours." He walked over to her and sat at the edge of her bed, placing a hand on her cheek. "Are you alright?"

She nodded. "I...I think so." Riku opened his mouth to speak, but stopped himself. Livia tried to search his eyes for the lost words he couldn't find, but he wouldn't look at her. "Riku?" she said, barely audible. "What's wrong?"

He inhaled deeply, letting his hand drop. "Livia..." he began, "when you saw Sora back there...you wanted to go back and join him, didn't you?"

"What?" she asked, completely caught off guard. "What are you talking about? I'm here with you, aren't I?"

"But do you want to be?" Riku demanded, looking her dead in the eyes.

"Why would I stay here if I wanted to go back and join Sora?" she questioned. "Riku, why are you even asking me this? What's really on your mind?"

He shook his head. Then he leaned over and kissed her softly on the lips. "I don't want to lose you," he mumbled against her skin. "The darkness...it's a solitary power, but I don't want to lose you. Not now, not ever."

Their lips rejoined momentarily before she whispered to him, "I'll admit to you, Riku, I've wondered if the darkness can really help save Kairi, but then I realized that Sora is the denizen of light. He's the one who will restore all the worlds...we're the ones who reside in the darkness. But you and I are the darkness, which means there has to be some good in it, right?"

Riku smiled. "I love how you see the good in everything."

"It just depends on your view of life," she answered simply. "When you think about it, light cannot exist without the darkness and vice versa. No matter what, there will always be those who live in the light and those who live in darkness. One isn't any better than the other, they just need to learn to live in harmony."

"Twilight," Riku mumbled. "Get some rest. Tomorrow we have to meet with Maleficent. She said that she had something important to go over with us."

He got up to leave when Livia suddenly grabbed his hand. "Please," she said quietly. "Stay?"

Riku looked down at the girl staring at him with big, baleful violet eyes and gave a small smile. "How old are you?" he joked.

She giggled softly, and then said more seriously, "I don't want to be alone. Not in this castle..."

Riku nodded understandingly and laid down with her, gently resting an arm over her body. She moved in closer to him, nuzzling her face into the crook of his neck, the rhythmic sounds of his breathing lulling her back to sleep.

Riku kissed her forehead and let out a sigh, staring at the ceiling as shadows danced around the room. He bit his lip and thought to himself, _I love her, but I can't tell her. She may end up hating me forever, but that's a risk I'll have to take in order to win this battle. The end is far from over._

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_**Review please!!**  
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	14. Invisible

**Alright, so I've finished writing/typing out this story, and it ends at chapter 22. I plan on making this story into a series, and so there will definitely be a sequel that coincides with 358/2 Days, KH2, blah blah blah.**

**But that's not til later...you still have eight more chapters after this to enjoy. So read on :) I don't own anything except my OC. Thanks to pottergurl16 for reviewing!**

**Keep the reviews coming, please :)**

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Riku led Livia down the marble corridors to the meeting room where Maleficent was waiting with a blue skinned man, tall and ominous, with a ball of blue flames for hair and a row of pointed teeth behind chapped, dead lips. He had been speaking to her in an irritated, yet hushed voice, and Livia heard Sora's name more than once.

"That smarmy vizier could've had 'em," he said irritatedly, "if someone had stuck around to give him a hand."

Riku stood with his arms crossed over his chest. "Hey, I did my part. I brought the princess, didn't I?"

"Princess?" Livia repeated, completely confused. "Riku, what--"

"Jafar was beyond help," Maleficent interjected. "Consumed by his own hatred. One should beware of letting it burn too fiercely."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," the man said. "Lighten up. I'm as cool as they come, okay?" He turned to Riku and grinned, the stench of dead reeking off of his skin. "By the way, kid, have we got something special for you."

Livia felt as if she was invisible--a stranger looking into a conversation that didn't pertain to her in any way, as if she had been left out of something important and she didn't like that feeling.

"We had a deal, yes?" Maleficent confirmed. "You help us, and we grant you your wish..."

On the cylindrical pedestal, the same small hologram of Kairi from before appeared, lying down with her eyes closed. "We have her now."

Livia looked over at Riku, who had a maniacal look in his eyes that was foreign to her. He looked...evil. And it terrified her.

"Go to her," Maleficent commanded, looking at them both. "Your vessel is waiting."

Then, a man stepped forward from the shadows, a pointed moustache on his face and a hook replacing his left hand. His large red feathered hat flopped as he walked, and his gruff voice called, "Just remember, this is no pleasure cruise. It won't be a pleasant voyage."

Riku looked from the man in red back to Maleficent. "Why are you doing all this for me?" he demanded, trying to reason with himself. "What's the catch?"

"Silly boy," Maleficent cooed, "You're like a son to me. I only want you to be happy."

Livia crossed her arms over her chest and stared at her feet. "I seriously doubt that," she muttered under her breath. Maleficent's eyes snapped over to where Livia stood, proving that she acknowledged her existence.

"Believe what you wish," she growled. "But lest we forget," she said, redirecting her attention back to Riku, "I kept my end of the bargain."

Riku just stared at her crossly for a moment before following the captain out of the meeting room. Livia ran after him, grabbing a hold of his shoulder and spinning him around to face her. "What's going on?" she implored. "What was all that about back there? What's with all this talk of viziers and princesses?"

Riku frowned. "I just...went and ran a few errands for Maleficent while you were unconscious. It's nothing."

"Riku, form what I understand, someone died!" Livia cried out. "Why doesn't that matter to you?"

"I didn't kill anyone!" Riku roared. "Sora did, alright? He was the one who ended that idiot's life, not me!"

"And then you kidnapped someone?" she asked in disbelief. "I want to know what's going on and I want to know now. What's with all this princess talk? And why are you so afraid to tell me?"

"Hey," the captain barked, "Hurry it up, you scallywags. We have to set sail."

Riku sighed and tried to reach out and touch Livia's arm, but she recoiled, seemingly in disgust. His eyes darkened and he said lowly, "I'm doing what's best for Kairi and for everyone. Why can't you see that?"

She stared into his eyes, trying to find some speck of the Riku she had known back on Destiny Island. Whatever had been there before was now gone. "Who..." she whimpered, shaking her head slightly. "Who are you?"

Then she pushed past him and ran up to the large ship, past the captain and his first mate and into the Captain's Cabin before collapsing on the ground, her body wracked with sobs. She felt the boat rocking beneath her and she tried to steady her breathing. It was going to be a long voyage.

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	15. Confrontations

**Two chapters in one day! Huzzah. I really like this one, I have no idea why. The end makes me laugh.**

**Thank you to Zamaya and pottergurl16 for reviewing and newty01 for adding this to their favourites. High five :)**

**Keep reviewing please! 7 chapters left.**

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Curled up with her knees pressed against her chest, Livia sat in the corner of the Captain's Cabin, waiting to arrive at their destination, which she still wasn't aware of. She heard some commotion coming from outside and got up to go investigate.

She crept up against the door of the cabin and peered outside. Her eyes widened as she saw Sora standing on the deck. "Sora..." she whispered. "What's he doing here?"

"I didn't think you'd come, Sora," she heard Riku's voice call from the upper level of the ship. Sora gasped and looked up at Riku. Livia kept watching. "Good to see you again," he said tauntingly.

"Where are Donald and Goofy?" Sora stuttered.

"Are they that important to you?" Riku countered. "More important than old friends?" He frowned at the brown haired boy staring at him with a distraught look gracing his features. "Instead of worrying about them, you should be asking..." he moved to the side to reveal Kairi, sitting lifelessly on the ground, her eyelids drooping as her head lolled from side to side. "About her."

"Kairi!" Sora exclaimed. Livia gasped from behind the door.

"That's right," Riku said smugly. "While you were off goofing around, I finally found her."

Sora went to run up to them when the hooked arm of the captain stopped him dead in his tracks. "Not so fast," he drawled. "No shenanigans aboard my vessel, boy." Then several Heartless appeared out of thin air, cutlasses drawn, poised to attack if Sora made one wrong move.

"Riku, why are you siding with the Heartless?" he cried out.

Riku let out a laugh. "The Heartless obey me now, Sora. Now I have nothing to fear."

"You're stupid!" he declared forcefully. "Sooner or later they'll swallow your heart."

"Not a chance," he replied dismissively. "My heart's too strong." Raising his right hand, he then said, "I've picked up a few other tricks as well. Like this, for instance."

Sora's jaw dropped as his shadow rose from the ground and assumed a three-dimensional shape. He stared into his own shadow's eyes before the ground beneath his feet gave way and he plummetted through a trap door and out of sight.

That's when Livia burst through the doors. "Riku, what are you doing?" she screamed at him. "How could you do that to him? He's your best friend!"

"You heard him, he didn't care about Kairi, only his two little minions," he remarked snidely. "He got what he deserved. Now we can find Kairi's heart without any other distractions."

Livia ran up the small flight of stairs to where Riku stood and where Kairi sat. Looking him straight in the eyes, she growled, "I don't know who you think you are, or what you've become, but the Riku I knew back home would never jeopardize his friend's life for the sake of his pride."

"This isn't about pride," he chided. "This is about saving Kairi."

"No, it isn't," she countered. "It may have been before, but not now. Now it's just you being jealous of Sora's strength. Just because you're older than him, you think you're better, but you're not. I've never seen someone so weak. The darkness is taking over your heart, Riku, and you've gone in so deep that I don't know if anyone can save you."

His eyes narrowed and he grabbed hold of her wrist, causing her to wince. "Listen to me," he said in a dangerously quiet voice. "If you want to go and join Sora in the hold, then that's fine by me. I'm not the weak one here, it's you. You're too afraid to accept that the darkness has a power that can't be trumped. The darkness will always win over the light." He let her go and turned to leave. "Get out of my sight," he said to her. "I don't want to see your face."

She let one single tear roll down her cheek before wiping it away with the back of her hand. She wouldn't shed any more tears for whoever this person claimed to be. Captain Hook tried to grip onto Livia's shoulder, but she turned to face him with a dark expression on her face. "If you even try to touch me, I will throw you overboard."

"Women," she heard the captain mutter to his first mate. "Let's set sail, Smee."

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	16. Peter Pan

**Thank you to Zamaya and pottergurl16 for reviewing and being awesome as always. I've started writing the sequel already...more info to come later on.**

**Review please!**

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Livia looked around to see if Riku was anywhere nearby, watching. Once she was sure that he wasn't, she slid down the ladder into the ship's hold and went to where she assumed Sora was. She heard the voices of Sora, Donald and Goofy, as well as one she wasn't familiar with. There was a small hole in the door where you could peer out, and she went on her toes to look inside.

"Huh? Livia?" Sora said, confused yet surprisingly chipper. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question," she said with a smile. "Need help getting out?"

"That'd be nice," he commented. "I tried my keyblade, but it's locked from the outside."

"Let me try," she offered. Livia materialized her keyblade and pointed it at the door. It swung open easily and everyone trotted out...except for a boy wearing all green with firey red hair and a matching green cap who was floating in mid-air. "Who are you?"

"Name's Peter Pan," he said, shaking her hand. "That's Tinkerbell," he pointed to the small golden glow that floated around his left shoulder. "She was working on getting us out when you came along and sped up the process." He turned to the fairy and winked. "No offense, Tink. Now, let's go find Wendy!"

"Wait, you can fly?" Livia noticed. "How is that possible?"

"Anyone can fly," he grinned. "Wanna try? You just need a little pixie dust..." He winked at Tinkerbell and she twirled around everyone and sprinkled them with golden sparkles. "Give it a try."

Donald jumped up in the air and flapped his arms about, but then fell to the ground with a huge _thud_. Tinkerbell was doubled over in laughter and Livia bit back a chuckle.

"You'd think he'd be able to fly, since he's technically a bird," she whispered to Sora, who snickered. "I'm sure you guys will get a hold of this flying thing soon enough. I have to get back to the Captain's Cabin now or else they're going to get suspicious."

Livia went to leave when Sora grabbed hold of her arm. "Wait," he said. "Why are you helping us? I thought that you were on Riku's side."

"I was," she admitted, "but that was before the darkness took over his heart. I only sided with him because..." she stopped herself, staring at the ground.

"You love him, don't you?" Sora asked softly.

Her vision blurred as tears started forming in her eyes. "Dammit," she muttered as she tried to make them go away. "I...I do. But not the person he is now...I love the person that he used to be. And no matter how deep he sinks into the darkness, I'll still love whatever piece of him is left from how he was back home."

Livia's keyblade started to glow. She stared down at it in puzzlement, wondering what she had done to make it start acting so strangely.

"Your keyblade..." Sora pondered aloud. "It started glowing when you mentioned our home...could it be that it's affected by memories?"

"Now that you mention it," Livia thought, "It does appear in my hands whenever I mention the islands or even think of home and how much I miss it."

"Maybe your keyblade has some kind of special power," Goofy suggested. "If Sora's can close keyholes in other worlds, maybe yours can unlock people's memories!"

Livia smiled widely and nodded. "Maybe...I've never tried it, but I'll give it a shot the next time I can. But I really have to get back." She turned and started to walk away.

"Okay," Sora said, frowning a little. But it didn't take him long to perk back up again. "Hey, Livia?"

"Yeah, Sora?" she turned back and was tackled into a hug from her best friend.

"Thanks," he mumbled.

"You're welcome," she smiled, hugging him back. "To get to the Captain's Cabin the alternate way, you can go up that ladder and through the holes in the floorboards," she mentioned. "I have to go back up the regular way...it'll be safer for you if you investigate incognito."

With that, she turned and climbed back up the ladder to one of the rooms beneath the Captain's Cabin. She was about to head upwards again when she heard the sound of a girl's voice. She looked over to see a girl a bit younger than her with a blue dress and curly brown hair.

"W-Who are you?" the girl asked timidly.

"I'm Livia," she said. "Don't worry, I'm here to help you. Do you know...Peter Pan?"

"Why, yes," she answered. "I'm Wendy."

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	17. Kairi

**First off, my apologies for this one being so short. Second, huge thank you's to pottergurl16, Zamaya, SoulNinjas and Island-style-girl for reviewing the last chapter! Made me smile.**

**Can you believe Christmas (for those of you who celebrate it) is next week? Insanity. You can bet this story will be all done by then. ;D**

**Anyway, you all rule, keep reviewing! And thanks to everyone who has been reading/recommending this story, Chapter 1 has 200+ reads :)**

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"Wendy," Livia said, looking around the room. "Have you seen another girl anywhere? With short red hair, looks a little like me?"

"Actually, yes," she answered. "She's over there..." She pointed to the corner of the room and Livia could see one of Kairi's shoes, but the rest of her body was blocked from view by boxes and barrels. She ran over to her cousin and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Kairi? Kairi, are you alright?" she asked, but knew it was pointless. Kairi's eyes seemed dead, and Livia knew that the Heartless had taken her heart. She was an empty shell. But then a question arose in her head: If Kairi doesn't have a heart, then why is it that her body didn't become a Heartless?

Livia snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Wendy speak. "Peter? Peter Pan? Is that you?"

Livia looked over to see Wendy on her hands and knees, peering at the lower deck through a grate in the floor. Sure enough, it was Peter, Sora, Donald and Goofy, all looking up to find Wendy hovering over them.

"Wendy," Sora asked, "Is there another girl there with you?"

"Well, yes," she replied. "Two, actually."

"Livia? You're there?" Sora asked. "Is Kairi with you?"

"She's here, Sora," she said sadly. "But...she isn't herself."

Kairi's hand fell over the grate and into Sora's view. He held out his hand to her and tried to reach for her through the grid. And then, suddenly, her fingers moved. Livia gasped in surprise and amazement, and Sora let out a happy laugh.

"I don't know how you did that," Livia whispered, "but I'm so glad that it worked."

Then the door burst open, revealing Smee, the captain's first mate. He grabbed Wendy's arm and Kairi's as well and began to drag them out of the room.

"What do you think you're doing?" Livia demanded, trying to make him let go of them.

"Sorry miss," he said with a nasaly voice, "Captain's orders." Then a few Heartless appeared before her, and she knew that trying to fight them would be a bad idea.

"Wendy? Wendy!" she heard Peter cry from below. "Hey, let's get up there!"

Livia followed Smee to the Captain's Cabin. He'd since let go of Wendy's arm, but carried Kairi since she couldn't walk. Wendy was wringing her fingers, terrified of what they were going to do. Livia tried to comfort her, but she was shaking like a leaf.

Riku stood in the Captain's Cabin alongside Captain Hook and stared at Livia with cold eyes. "Are you coming with me, or not?"

She was about to answer when she heard Wendy cry out and fall to the floor. Smee stood over her with a mallet and had knocked her unconscious. She ran to her aid and laid her down on the cushioned bench. Glaring at Riku, she answered, "No."

Sora burst into the room with Donald, Goofy and Peter as Riku scooped up Kairi in his arms. "Riku, wait!" he called out, but it was too late. Riku had disappeared through a portal.

"Wendy!" Peter cried as he rushed to her. "This is as far as I can go. I've got to help Wendy!" He pulled her over his shoulders and flew out the window.

"I'm sorry, Sora, but I have to leave you too," Livia said apologetically.

"H-Huh? Why?"

"I have to make sure Kairi's okay," she said sadly. "I know where Riku took her. It's a world called Hollow Bastion. I'll see you there, right?"

He nodded. "Yeah. See you soon."

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	18. The Beast

**Alright, so this part is really short and so I'm going to post part 19 in a few minutes. Read that memo, this one isn't important :P**

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Livia closed her eyes and summoned her own portal before it eclipsed her, sending her back to Maleficent's castle. She opened her eyes again and found herself in the shadows, watching as Riku was slouched on one knee, panting heavily as Maleficent hovered over him.

"It was reckless to bring her here without at least using a vessel," she scolded. "Remember, relying too heavily on the dark powers could cost you your heart."

Suddenly, a loud roar echoed throughout the castle. Livia gasped slightly, but covered her mouth so that they didn't know she was nearby.

"A castaway," Maleficent said casually. "Though his world perished, his heart did not. When we took the princess from his castle, he apparently followed her here through sheer force of will. But fear not. No harm will come to you. He is no match for your power."

Riku looked up at her expectantly.

"Yes," she continued. "The untapped power that lies within you. Now, child, it's time you awakened that power, and realized your full potential!"

"No..." Livia whispered as Riku's body was enveloped in a green glow. She couldn't stand to see any more, so she ran out as quietly as she could back up to her own room. Locking the door behind her, she paced around the room worriedly. "Sora, please show up soon..."

She heard another roar coming from outside and looked out the window to see a huge, hairy beast with a purple cloak scanning the perimeter. She decided that she needed to find a way to help him, and so she ran down the stairs and out the door to where he stood.

The beast towered over her and growled deeply. "Who are you?"

"I want to help you find the princess," she gulped. "I'm not here to hurt you, I promise."

He calmed down a bit once he looked into her eyes and saw that she was telling the truth. But his anger returned when he heard another set of footsteps approaching. Livia looked up at one of the higher ledges to find Riku looking down at them.

"You said you weren't coming," Riku mused. "What do you know." He then directed his attention to the Beast. "No vessel, no help from the Heartless...so tell me, how'd you get here?"

"I simply believed. Nothing more to it," the Beast said solemnly. "When our world fell into darkness, Belle was taken from me. I vowed I would find her again, no matter what the cost. I believed I would find her. So, here I am. She must be here." And then he roared, "I will have her back!"

"Take her if you can," Riku taunted.

The Beast lunged at him, but Riku averted him easily, flipping back and striking him hard with his keyblade. Livia ran up to Riku and pushed him, hitting him repeatedly with her fists.

"What's wrong with you?" she demanded. "He's only trying to find the woman that he loves!"

"His interference could cost Kairi her heart," Riku replied coldly. "Get away from me." He latched onto her wrist and tossed her aside like a cheap ragdoll. She fell to the ground and hit her head against the cold stone floor, the metallic taste of blood lingering in her mouth.

Just before her vision faded to black, she saw Sora, Donald and Goofy running towards them. "Sora..." she mumbled. "I hope you're not too late..."


	19. Close Encounter

**So, here's chapter 19. Only three more 'til the sequel!**

**I wanted to thank Island-style-girl, pottergurl16 and Fanfiction Fanatiction for reviewing the last few chapters. To FF, I wanted to thank you personally because your review really helped me a lot. I promise you that there will definitely be more character development in the sequel. This story is more like the first installment of a three-part series. It gets better, pinky swear. :)**

**Aaaaanyway! Reviews are awesome, hope you enjoy :)**

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"Livia?" she heard a voice call out to her. "Livia, wake up!"

Livia's eyes slowly opened to reveal the hazed image of Sora leaning over her, trying to wake her up. She sat up slowly and rubbed the spot on her head where it had collided with the ground and shook the dizziness away. Looking around, she asked, "Where are Donald and Goofy?"

Sora just stared at the ground sadly and motioned to the wooden sword that was by his side. "They had to follow the Keyblade Master," he said sadly, "and that person...is Riku."

"What?" Livia exclaimed in disbelief. "But that's impossible! The keyblade chose you, you're the one who fought your way here to save Kairi! You're the one with the stronger heart, Sora, I know it!"

"If I'm the stronger one," he sighed, "then why did the keyblade choose to go with Riku instead? It just...disappeared from my hands and landed right in his. I wasn't meant for his. I'm not strong."

Livia rose to her feet and took the wooden sword in her hands. "Sora, you're the one who was able to lock all those keyholes, remember? That's something Riku couldn't do. Maleficent has powers that have unleashed the darkness in Riku's heart, and that's what's causing all this confusion. Riku may weild a keyblade just like I do, but he isn't the Keyblade Master. You are, and always will be."

He looked up at her and smiled. "Thanks," he said. "I really needed that."

She handed the wooden sword to him and helped him up. "You still need a weapon. We're going to prove to Riku that light will always conquer over darkness, no matter what."

They heard panting and turned to find the Beast rising to his feet as well. "Why...why did you...you come here?" he asked Sora. "I came to fight for Belle. And though I am on my own, I will fight. That's why I'm here."

"Me too," Sora agreed. "I'm not gonna give up now."

The three of them headed for the castle's main entrance, armed and ready to fight. They ran inside and made sure that no one knew they were there. They stuck to the shadows, even the Beast, and remained silent as they entered the main foyer.

"Be on your guard," the Beast warned. "They're close, I can feel it. Are you ready for them?"

Livia and Sora nodded.

From behind them, a small sound like a gust of wind caught the Beast's attention. They turned to see a beautiful young woman dressed in a golden ball gown with wavy brown hair standing still by the door.

"That must be Belle," Livia mumbled to herself.

The Beast was about to walk over to her when she suddenly vanished and dozens of small Heartless crawled at twitched in her place. In his fury, the Beast charged at the Heartless and dove into the room, and the door slammed shut behind him.

Sora and Livia turned to see Riku standing by the fountain that rested between the two sets of stairs and up to the second floor.

"Quit while you can," he said.

"No," Sora answered. "Not without Kairi."

"The darkness will destroy you," he said, when there was a flash and all of a sudden, he was wearing a different sort of suit that looked like dark blue and red veins that clung to his body and traveled all the way up his neck. A heart symbol was embedded in black on his chest, and he stood there, tall and powerful, waiting for Sora's response.

"You're wrong, Riku," he replied. "The darkness may destroy my body, but it can't touch my heart. My heart will stay with my friends. It'll never die!"

"Really..." Riku smirked, "Well, we'll just see about that!"

"Sora, look out!" Livia cried as a huge ball of glowing purple and blue energy barrelled towards them.

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	20. The Greatest Weapon

**Another short one--sorry! Only two more til the end!**

**Thanks to pottergurl16 for reviewing! keep em coming!**

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Livia thought for sure that she and Sora would be dead, but the impact never came. She opened her eyes to see Goofy standing before the two of them, his shield blocking the blow.

"Sora ain't gonna go anywhere!" Goofy said bravely.

"You'd betray your king?" Riku asked in a bored tone.

"Not on your life!" Goofy countered. "But I ain't gonna betray Sora either, 'cause he's become one of my best buddies after all we've been through together!" He then turned to his feathered friend and called, "See ya later, Donald! Could ya tell the king I'm really sorry?"

"Hold on, Goofy!" Donald quacked, "We'll tell him together!" Running up to Sora, Livia heard him mentioning something about 'All for one and one for all', but she wasn't really paying attention to their conversation. Her eyes were fixated on Riku, and his were on her. If looks could kill, she'd have been a death wish.

Any shred of the old Riku was gone now. Whatever Maleficent had unleashed within him had completely taken him over. He may have looked like Riku, but his heart told a different story and Livia could sense it.

"Thanks," Sora's voice brought her back to reality, "Thanks a lot...Donald and Goofy."

"How will you fight without a weapon?" Riku demanded.

Sora glared at the silver haired teen that stood before him. "I know now, I don't need the keyblade. I've got a better weapon. My heart."

"Your heart?" Riku snorted. "What's that weak little thing going to do for you?"

"Although my heart may be weak, it's not alone," Sora said. "It's grown with each new experience, and it's found a home with all the friends I've made. I've become a part of their heart just as they've become a part of mine. And if they think of me now and then, and if they don't forget me...then our hearts will be one." Sora poised himself to attack. "I don't need a weapon. My friends are my power!"

There was a flash of light and the keyblade reappeared in Sora's hands. A huge smile landed on Livia's face and she whispered to Sora, "I told you so."

Then Riku lunged at Sora with his own keyblade, trying to win back the pride he had stolen from him yet again. Donald and Goofy tried to jump in and help him, but Livia held them back.

"You have to stop," she beseeched. "This is Sora's battle. He's the Keyblade Master and he's the one who will end all this chaos."

Sure enough, Riku let out a cry and Livia turned back to see him with his hands on his knees, panting heavily as Sora held the keyblade firmly in his hand. Riku's clothes returned to normal and he ran off, presumably to find Maleficent.

Livia was about to go follow him when Sora stopped her. "Where are you going?"

She just stood there momentarily, wondering if following Riku would even help. "I don't know."

"Stop running," Sora said with a smile. "Come on. We'll save Kairi and Riku together. We're friends, right? Together, nothing can stop us."

She smiled back and him and said, "Right."

They turned to find the Beast coming out from the room that the Heartless had come from. All he said was, "So, your heart won this battle."

Sora nodded and looked over in the direction that Riku went. "Let's go."

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**I'm in a rush, sorry. Review please!**


	21. True Darkness

**The next one is the end! Eep.**

**Thank you to pottergurl16 and Island-style-girl for reviewing the last chapter! :) I've been working on the sequel and have one and a half chapters done so far. I don't know when I'll start posting it, but I want to get at least five of them done first...so maybe after Christmas (if you celebrate Christmas)? We'll see.**

**Anyway, enjoy this one, and don't forget to review!**

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The five of them ran down the long, marble hallways until they were all stopped dead in their tracks. Before them stood Maleficent, her cepter in one hand, staring down at the four with amusement in her eyes. "Oh, dear Livia," she cooed, "Defecting, are we?"

Livia smirked. "Turns out the darkness isn't for me. Clashes with my hair."

Sora snickered.

She frowned deeply. "I'm afraid you're too late. Any moment now, the final Keyhole will be unsealed. This world will be plunged into darkness. It is unstoppable."

"We'll stop it!" Sora declared confidently, preparing for battle. "After coming this far, there's no way we're gonna let that happen!"

Maleficent looked enraged. "You poor, simple fools," she berated, "You think you can defeat me? Me, the mistress of all evil?" Her body was surrounded by a dark purple glow and then, without warning, she attacked. The four of them dodged her magic spells and Livia and Sora attacked her with their keyblades.

Maleficent then cast a fire spell and it hit Livia's left arm. She cried out in pain and fell to the ground, blood spurting from the open wound.

"Livia!" Sora yelled. "Are you okay?"

Livia winced, saying, "I'll be fine, just finish her off!"

Sora nodded and charged at the witch, delivering a final blow with his Kingdom Key. Maleficent let out a high-pitched shriek and summoned a portal with her cepter, fleeing before Sora could really finish her off.

Once she had disappeared, Sora ran to Livia's side. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, seeing Livia's entire arm coated in red.

"I'm f-fine," she answered, biting back her tears. "Let's go find Kairi."

Sora helped Livia up and she dematerialized her keyblade, clutching her arm as they kept on walking down the hallway.

"They're close, I can sense it," Livia muttered, heading towards the end of the corridor. Sora pushed open the huge wooden doors to find Maleficent clutching her chest in pain and Riku standing there in that blue and red vein-like suit, a keyblade in his hand.

"Riku!" Sora exclaimed. "Is that--"

"Yes. A keyblade," Riku answered smugly. "But unlike yours, this keyblade holds the power to unlock people's hearts."

Livia peered at Riku. Something was very, very wrong. His voice still sounded the same, but there was another voice beneath his, as if his body had been possessed and whoever was within him was trying to find their way out.

"Allow me to demonstrate," he continued. "Behold!" He pierced his keyblade into Maleficent's chest. "Now, open your heart, surrender it to the darkness! Become darkness itself!"

"This is it...this power!" she cackled. "Darkness...the true Darkness!"

Then Maleficent's body underwent a transformation. Livia's eyes went wide as the darkness surrounded the witch and she became...a dragon.

A huge black dragon now stood before herself and the others, green fire being emitted from its nostrils and throat. Her long, black tail whipped around the room, and Livia just barely dodged it as Sora and the others went in for the attack.

Her entire left arm felt completely numb from the blood loss and the burn. She backed away from the dragon and looked around in search of Riku. She finally spotted him standing at the other side of the room in the shadows, his arms crossed over his chest, an amused look on his face.

The amusement soon vanished once the dragon let out a loud roar and collapsed to the ground in defeat. Maleficent's body soon started to fade, turning into nothing but a giant black burn embedded into the ground.

"How ironic," he chided. "She was just another puppet after all."

"What?" Livia asked, confused. "But I thought that she--"

"The Heartless were using her from the beginning," Riku interrupted. "A fitting end to such a fool."

A portal opened behind him and he stepped through, disappearing before their eyes yet again.

"Come on," Livia coaxed. "This battle's almost over, Sora. Kairi's close...I just know it."

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	22. The End

**Okay, so this is the end! Remember, there _will _be a sequel and I'm working on it now. I have up to chapter 4 done, so maybe I'll be able to post the first chapter by tomorrow.**

**Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed (thanks to pottergurl16 and Island-style-girl for reviewing the last chapter and being my most loyal reviewers)! This story has had over 300+ hits. Not too shabby for my first try.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing this, but I gotta say, the sequel's gonna be a lot better, so stay tuned for that. Read, review, enjoy!**

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They ran into a room that held its own second floor with staircases on either side. At the very top looked to be a giant Keyhole, electric bolts zapping into the center. Around the walls were giant glass tubes with who Livia assumed to be the princesses in them. They all ran up to the second level and Sora gasped.

"Kairi!" He ran to her and lifted her head, trying to shake her awake. "Kairi! Kairi! Open your eyes!"

"It's no use," Riku's voice came from above. "That girl has lost her heart. She cannot wake up."

"What?" Sora demanded. "You...you're not Riku!"

"The Keyhole cannot be completed so long as the last princess of heart still sleeps," he continued.

"Kairi's a princess?" Livia and Sora asked in unison.

"Yes," Riku responded. "And without her power, the Keyhole will remain incomplete. It is time she awakened. But first, you must give the princess back her heart."

Sora fell to his knees, clutching his chest.

"Sora!" Livia cried, rushing to help him. "Sora, don't give in!"

"Don't you see yet?" Riku smirked. "It's been there all along. Kairi's heart rests inside of you!"

"Kairi...Kairi's inside of me?" Sora repeated.

Riku walked down towards Sora. "I know all that there is to know."

Rising to her feet, Livia challenged, "Who are you?"

He grinned. "It is I, Ansem, the seeker of darkness." He walked over to Sora and pointed his keyblade at him. "So, I shall release you now, princess. Complete the Keyhole with your power. Open the door, and lead me into everlasting darkness!"

As Riku's keyblade came crashing down on Sora, a voice, crystal clear that both he and Livia could hear, called out his name.

"Sora!"

"Kairi..." Livia breathed.

Sora summoned his keyblade and blocked Riku's blow. "Forget it!" he barked. "There's no way you're taking Kairi's heart!"

"So be it," he mused. "We'll do this the hard way."

Livia gasped as Riku and Sora began their battle. She was worried--Sora was still recovering from his two previous battles with Maleficent, and he looked almost ragged. She knew that she had to help him, but she had no idea how.

Riku slashed at Sora and knocked the keyblade out of his hands.

"Sora, look out!" Livia cried as Sora scrambled to regain his weapon. Riku was running at Sora with his own keyblade armed and Livia inhaled deeply, knowing what had to be done. She materialized her own keyblade and charged at him as he charged at Sora, and at the same time, her keyblade pierced his heart just as his pierced hers.

For a moment, Riku's eyes widened and he cried, "Livia? Livia, are you alright?" He pulled her keyblade out from his chest, confused as to why it hadn't killed him. He felt...free for the first time in a long while, but saw the body of the girl he loved staggering before him.

Riku's keyblade was still in her chest and she fell to her knees, gasping for air. Sora ran over to her and ripped the weapon out from her chest. "No...no!" Sora bit back a sob. "Why did you do this, Livia? Why?"

Riku let out a scream of pain and fell to his knees, clutching his head. Sora stared at him momentarily before realizing what Livia had done. She had used her keyblade to revive Riku's memories--if only for a moment. Riku and Ansem were fighting for control, and Sora feared that Ansem was winning.

Livia's eyes began to droop as Sora tried to keep her awake. "I..." she whispered, her voice hoarse, "I believe in you..."

"Don't worry, Livia," Sora whimpered, "I'll find a way to bring you back. I promise."

And with that, her heart escaped her body, floating up into the air until it disappeared into nothing.

**End**


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